


The plan is to fan this spark into a flame

by updownandsideways



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F, M/M, Nonbinary Lafayette, Trans Eliza
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-01
Updated: 2016-05-16
Packaged: 2018-06-05 18:36:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,977
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6716467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/updownandsideways/pseuds/updownandsideways
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's a college AU, because I love college AU's. And people fall in love, because I love it when people fall in love.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I'm in a bit of a writing block, but apparently writing something in a different style than you normally do is supposed to help? So this story is me trying that out.  
> A few notes regarding the actual thing:  
> 1\. I know it's really weird to read "John" as "Jack" I cringe every time I write it  
> 2\. Hercules Mulligan's real wife's name was Elizabeth, which may be confusing when Eliza shows up later in the story, so I just nicknamed her Beth and I love her already.  
> 3\. I have no idea why Thomas Jefferson and James Madison are engaged in this. Bare with me.  
> 4\. Also I know nothing about american college. What is it. How does it even work. How is it so expensive.  
> 5\. Important info: Everything I write is based on the characters from Hamilton the musical, not the actual founding fathers. (That would be even weirder.) I've never really seen the characters in Hamilton much as based on real life people, seeing as the characters are so much less awful in the musical.

John Laurens had exactly two goals set for himself on the first day of college.

1\. Become friends (at least friendly) with his new roommate.

2\. Actually tell people he was gay. Casually Like his sexuality was something he was secure of. That was why he wanted to go to a college where he didn't know anyone, right? Not only to get away from his family, but to get away from the other, fake version of himself. 

John had persuaded his father to let him travel to New York by himself. Yes, it had led to about a week of arguing and general shitty-ness in the Laurens household, but John felt like it was well worth it. Standing on his own in front of door nr. 326, the door leading to the room he most likely would live in the next four years, he was happy his father wasn't there with him. 

John wondered for a second if he should knock, but that was ridiculous, right? This was his room too. He simply got a tighter grip of the bag slung over his shoulder and opened the door. 

What met him inside caused him to freeze in the doorway. Music (Beyonce, maybe?) was playing inside on full volume. A few boxes were stabled in a corner of the room, and one of the beds (the one that John was pretty sure was supposed to be his) was covered with clothes. On the other bed, a couple was sprawled, woven so tightly together that John wasn't sure what body parts belonged to who. 

The couple must have noticed that he walked in, because they quickly pulled a part. Both of them with red cheeks and tussled hair. 

"Oh, wow, sorry," one of them said. The first thing John noticed about the man talking was that he was  _large_. Broad shouldered and tall, carrying himself like he knew exactly how brute he looked. His girlfriend, at least John assumed she was his girlfriend, sat on the bed, smoothing down her hair. She looked embarrassed, flashing John a quick smile. The guy didn't look embarrassed at all. He only reached out a hand for John to shake. 

"Hercules," the guy said. He smiled, transforming his face from scarily serious to oddly soft looking. "But don't call me that. Mulligan is enough." 

"Mulligan," John repeated, letting his hand be shook with such force that it felt as if his arm was about to fall off. "I'm John."

"Yeah, I know," Mulligan said. He talked loudly to drown the sound of the music. "I looked up who my roommate was going to be, you know." 

"I did too," John said. He remembered seeing the name _Hercules_  and actually snorting out loud. That was probably not a good idea to mention that to Mulligan. 

"And this," Mulligan said, letting go of John's hand to point at the girl sitting on his bed. "Is my girlfriend, Beth." 

Dolley got up from the bed to shake John's hand. "Sorry about all that," she said. She was pretty, John couldn't help but notice. She looked incredibly small beside Mulligan, with her delicate face and hands. Her braids reached her almost to the waist, somehow making her look even shorter.

"No, no," John could feel his face go red. "It's all right." 

Next to Beth, John could see Mulligan frowning at him. "You from the south?" he asked. 

John had never hated his accent more than he did in that moment. "Charleston." 

Mulligan grinned. "Awesome. Only asking because every girl I've ever met  _loves_ a southern accent. Maybe yours will rub off on me." 

Beth playfully slapped his arm, and Mulligan grinned. And that, John thought, would be the perfect time to mention how it really didn't matter to him if girls liked his southern accent. But he didn't. He just let Mulligan carry the conversation forward, nervously fidgeting with the straps on his bag.

"Hey, do you have your boxes?" Mulligan asked. 

"Yeah." John pointed nodded vaguely towards the doorway behind him. "They're outside."

"I'll help you carry them, John," Mulligan said. He looked down at Beth, who nodded. 

"That would be great!" John smiled. He mentally crossed off a point on his list. "But err, all my friends call me Jack at home." 

They didn't. They never had. But this was  _college,_ and John wanted to be a new person in every way possible. 

"Cool," Mulligan said, pushing past him to get to the door. "Jack it is, then." 

Jack dropped his bag on the floor, taking a last look at the room before he followed Mulligan out in the hallway. So far, college was great. 

 

 

* * *

 

Alexander Hamilton had been waiting for his roommate all day. He had arrived at the college the day before, and spent his time checking out campus and getting his side of the room ready. He didn't have a lot of stuff to actually get ready, though. A picture of his mom. His crappy laptop. His books, his clothes, his english dictionary. He had gotten a glimpse of other people's rooms while walking around campus, and all of them looked more fleshed out than his. Posters on the walls. Pictures of friends. When the first semester was over, Alex decided, his room with look the same as theirs. Complete with faerie lights around the bed and candles on the nightstand. 

Alex had been okay yesterday. He had something to do. Scout college. Prepare from his classes. Now, he had nothing to do but pase around the tiny dormroom. Alex knew he should probably go out. Meet people. But what if he left and missed his roommates arrival? He was most likely going to spend every day for at least a year with this person, after all. It was important to make a good first impression. 

Alex was so busy worrying about his roommate that he didn't even notice the person standing in the doorway before he had walked another round around the room. 

The person coughed, and Alex jumped. He rushed forward towards the figure in the doorway, who took a surprised step back. " _Aaron Burr_ ," Alex said, eagerly reaching out a hand for Aaron to shake. Aaron hesitated for half a second, then took Alex's hand. He had a wide smile plastered on his face. "That's me." 

"Alexander Hamilton," Alex said, shaking Aaron's hand. "I'm so happy to finally meet you." 

"Glad to meet you too." Aaron dropped Alex's hand, still smiling. He had a friendly face, Alex noted, even though his smile didn't quite reach his eyes. 

Alex took a step to the side, letting Aaron in the room. "I got here yesterday," Alex said. "So I've kind of been making myself comfortable. Have you gone around campus yet? It looks amazing, from what I can tell. But you've probably been here before. I just read about this college online, so this is all new to me. Anyway: I took the bed on the left side, if that's okay. I just sleep better when I'm closer to the window. If you want so switch, that's cool. But I'm really more comfortable closest to the window."

Aaron raised a hand, efficiently cutting him off. "The other bed is fine."

With that, Aaron walked over to the free bed and dropped his bag on it. Alex followed him with his eyes, looking as Aaron opened his bag and pulled out his phone, texting. 

"I'm sorry," he said, when he saw Alex looking at him. "I just have to tell someone I got here all right." 

"Oh no," Alex said, sitting down on his own bed. "Go ahead." 

Finally, Aaron let his phone slip down into his pocket. There was a moment of silence, where the both of them just stared at each other. Measuring, judging, evaluating...

"Are your parents here?" Alex asked, when the silence felt a bit too thick. Aaron immediately cringed, but only for a moment. A second later, the smile was back on his face. 

"My foster parents," Aaron folded his hands on his lap, "just dropped me off."

"Foster parents?" Alex asked. He couldn't contain the excitement in his voice. After everything that happened in Nevis, everything that happened with his uncle and him when they got to the US, Alex was glad he wasn't the only one with a difficult family situation. 

"My real parents," Aaron said, finally letting the smile slip from his face. "Aren't here anymore." 

"You're an orphan?" Alex knew the tone in his voice wasn't exactly appropriate, but that was too late to do something about. "I'm an orphan too!"

Aaron just stared at him. "That's... interesting." 

The conversation, despite being interesting wasn't going exactly the way Alex had hoped. Aaron stood up from the bed, not looking at Alex. "I'll go get my boxes," he said. 

Alex immediately followed Aaron as he started walking towards the door. "I'll help you," he said, keeping his voice steady. Sometimes he talked too loud, Alex knew that. He also knew that he had spent exactly five minutes with his roommate so far, and already managed to annoy him. 

"Thank you," Aaron said. "I appreciate it." 

His tone was cold. Alex bit the inside of his cheek. Aaron finally turned to look at him again, tilting his head. "When we're done," Aaron said. "I'll buy us a drink. I know a good bar around here. Deal?" 

The offer was kind enough, but Alex could tell there was something behind it. Aaron looked at him like he was calculating his reaction. 

But Alex couldn't say no to a offer like that, could he? He didn't want to say no. Alex needed Aaron Burr to like him. Alex desperately _wanted_  Aaron Burr to like him. 

So he nodded and shook Aaron's hand for the second time that evening. "Deal." 

 

* * *

 

 

It took about an hour and Jack, Mulligan and Beth's combined effort to get all Jack's boxes to the room. 

"Man, you have a lot of stuff," Mulligan said when he finally set the last box down on the floor. Mulligan had carried more than any of them, but he didn't seem tired at all. 

"Yeah, sorry," Jack said. Sometimes he forgot exactly how much stuff piled up when you lived in a household where money really wasn't a problem. Jack felt kind of embarrassed by it. He probably didn't need half of the stuff in those boxes. 

Mulligan had found his phone, and seemed to be texting someone. "We had actually agreed to meet with a friend right about now," Mulligan said. "Wanna come?"

Jack wondered if Mulligan could tell exactly how happy the offer made him. "Sure!"

 

"You're going to love them," Beth said. 

"Them?" 

"Yeah," Mulligan said, frowning at Jack. " _They_ are lovely." 

Jack suddenly felt very stupid. "Oh," he said, scratching his neck. "I'm sure I'll love them." 

And with that, they left the dorm room. 

 

The place Mulligan had set out to meet his friend turned out to be a bar. It was exceptionally crowded and exceptionally loud. As soon as they walked in, Mulligan hurried towards the bar, where it seemed like his friend was waiting for him.

"Lafayette," Mulligan yelled, voice booming. A person at the bar with a rather impressive tied up bundle of hair and a large pair of glasses turned to face him. 

"Hercules!" Lafayette yelled back. They were sitting on one of the bar stools, legs crossed and a bear on the counter in front of them. When they saw Mulligan approaching them, their face instantly lit up in a large smile. 

Beth lingered behind, walking with John towards the bar. "Hello, Lafayette," she said as soon as she was next to Mulligan again. Lafayette smiled wider and leaned over to kiss her on the cheek.

"Beth," they said, voice soft. "I haven't seen you since I last was in town!"

Beth laughed, pulling back to get a proper look at Lafayette. "I know!" She said. "I've missed you."

"Beth lives here in New York," Mulligan explained. "And Lafayette and I went to the same high school in Indiana."

"Ah," Jack said, looking from Dolley to Mulligan. "Long distance."

Lafayette, who had been quietly observing since Jack started talking, now spoke again. "Oh, so who's this one?" 

Jack might have been offended by that, but Lafayette's tone wasn't unkind. Jack reached out a hand for them to shake. "I'm John," he said. "But everyone calls me Jack." 

It felt weird to introduce himself that way. But it felt good, too. Jack was what his mother had wanted to name him. Short for Jackson. Jack didn't remember exactly why, but his father had put a stop to it. Instead, he had become John. 

Well, not anymore. 

"Jack," Lafayette said, letting go of his hand. "Nice to meet you. You're Hercules roommate?"

"Yes," Jack said, at the exact same time Mulligan did. 

"I thought," Jack said, "You didn't like people calling you Hercules?" 

The question was directed at Mulligan, but Lafayette answered. "Well, _minou_ , I do not care about what he likes."

Beth laughed and Mulligan glared at her. "I can go the distance," she started singing. 

"This is funny, because two of you have known me for  _years_ and still think you're being original," Mulligan said, exasperated. 

"Come on," Lafayette said. "Let's find a booth. And stop being angry. Its not our fault you have such a  _fantastic_ name." 

Mulligan glared at him, but still followed Lafayette as they walked through the bar, looking for a booth. There were people everywhere, talking, drinking, singing,  _kissing_. There was something in the air, Jack could almost taste it. Something new and intoxicating. 

"Burr!" Mulligan yelled, pulling Jack out of his thoughts. They were at the back of the bar, and the others had stopped walking just in front of a tiny booth. Not an empty one, though. Two people were sitting in the booth, one of them looking at Mulligan like he had just seen a ghost. 

"Burr," Mulligan said again. The guy in the booth he was talking to smiled, but his face was stiff. "Mulligan," he answered, his voice strained. 

"Good to see you," Mulligan said, as Lafayette coughed slightly next to him. "Got room for a few more?" 

"Of course," Burr answered, now expressionless. "There's always room." 

The guy sitting opposite to him looked up, seemingly intrigued. His dark hair was tied up in a slick ponytail, and his dark eyes jumped from one of Jack's friends to the other. As Jack and the others sat down, he continued staring intently at them. 

"This is Alex," Burr said, as soon as everyone had sat down. "Alex, this is Mulligan, Beth, Lafayette..." Burr looked at Jack with a blanc expression. 

"I'm Jack," Jack said, raising a hand in an awkward wave. He felt kind of uncomfortable being stared at the way that Alex kid was looking at him. Like he was being  _read_. 

"All of them went to my high school," Burr continued. "Except from Jack. And Beth." 

"Jack's my roommate," Hercules explained. 

"All of you went to high school together?" Alex asked. Jack had no idea why, but he had kind of expected his voice to be darker. Alex sounded so _young_ , and Jack got a closer look at him he realized that he looked young too. Eyes too large for his face, large hands he hadn't quite grown into and a face yet to get rid of its baby fat. 

"Yup," Lafayette said. "And what a joy that was." 

Beth snorted, and Jack raised an eyebrow. "Is Burr your high school nemesis?" he asked, laughing. 

Burr smiled. It looked forced. "No, not at all," he said, his voice almost uncomfortably smooth, "We just hung out in different groups." 

"He liked to spend his time with assholes," Mulligan said, scowling. "We didn't."

Burr didn't say anything, just took a sip of his drink. Alex looked from one person to another, than shrugged. _His shoulders look so small_ , Jack thought. 

"Everyone were assholes in high school," Alex said.

"Oh no, I can guarantee you these guys still are," Mulligan said. "How are they, anyway?"

Burr frowned at Mulligan. "Who?"

Mulligan snorted, sharing a look with Beth;  _can you believe this guy?_  "The dynamic duo," he said. "Are they back from their honeymoon yet?"

Burr sighed, making a point of rubbing his temple with his fingers. "They're still engaged, Mulligan. And I'm fairly sure you'll be invited to their wedding."

"And I'm fairly sure I won't show up," Mulligan said.

Lafayette lazily leaned back in their seat. "If we get invited to their wedding, we come to their wedding. I really want to see Jefferson in a purple suit again."

"You think he'll wear the same purple suit as he wore to senior prom? That doesn't sound like Jefferson," Beth said. 

Lafayette grinned at her. "Oh, I don't think he'll wear the same suit. I think he'll buy a new, more expensive, purple suit. And then he'll buy James a matching one." 

"They're getting married  _now_?" Alex asked, sounding horrified. Jack couldn't help but smile at that, and he heard Lafayette laugh. 

"They have always been a bit... eccentric," Lafayette explained, smiling softly in Alex direction. "Believe it or not, this doesn't feel very soon for them." 

"Don't forget," Mulligan said, "They've always been very asshole-y. And assholes get married early to other assholes. That's just science."

Burr wrinkled his nose, but kept quiet. Jack was sure he saw him checking his phone under the table. 

"That just doesn't make any  _sense_ ," Alex said. Jack could see his cheeks getting red. "I mean, what's the point? Marriage in itself is an outdated tradition, but getting engaged when you're under the age of 20? That's what's awful about today's generation. We're told to do everything so  _fast_ , but none of the things that matter. Get married fast, start having kids fast, start a job you don't like fast, die fast... And worst of all, we're supposed to enjoy throwing our lives away! Its like our parents generation, and their parents generation, are allergic to progress. They want us to do what they did. Stand still! Get married, have kids, and then tell our kids to wait for other people to change the world. Its just pointless, that's all. And if your maybe-asshole friends stopped for a second to think about exactly _why_ they feel the need to have a pointless ceremony to express their love, they wouldn't get married at all." 

The table fell silent. Everyone were staring and Alex, suddenly more aware of himself, looked down at his hands. "Sorry," he said, voice much smaller than before. "I know I talk too loud sometimes." 

No one said anything. That was, until Jack raised shook his head as he stared. "That was brilliant, man," he heard himself say. Alex looked up at him and smiled, and for some reason the sheer look of that made Jack feel a bit like someone had just punched him very hard in the chest.

"Woo," Hercules yelled, and reached over the table so Alex could high five him. Burr was frowning again, and Lafayette and Beth were smiling. 

"You're something else," Beth said, leaning against her boyfriends shoulder. 

And with that, the mood of the booth was instantly lifted. As the night went on, the conversations (and Alex) grew louder and more confident. John found himself laughing more often than not, and nobody missed Burr when he after about an hour excused himself from their table. This was his life from now on, Jack thought. At least he wanted it to be. Lafayette's snarky comments and Beth's laugh. Mulligan's jokes and Alex's loud voice. This nigh, all of it felt perfect to Jack. And none of his new friends (were they his friends now, he certainly hoped so) acted as his old friends in Charleston. Jack would have no problem crossing off point two on his to do list here, he was almost sure of it. 

But just not tonight, Jack thought, leaning back in his seat to listen to his new friends talk. Tonight was made for other memories. 

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some stuff that needs to be said. 
> 
> 1\. I'm afrolatina, so hopefully I'll be able to write about poc issues without sounding too awful. But (!) if I ever offend anyone please let me know!  
> 2\. I'm also cis, and my sexuality is just a mess rn. I probably don't know half the stuff I need to to actually write lgbtq+ characters well, so please point out any mistakes I make.  
> 3\. This is literally my first fic ever so yeah, there will be a lot of mistakes and please correct me when I do something wrong.   
> 4\. I'm going to write Alex like a bit of a douche, because he is.   
> 5\. And also Eliza is more than just soft I'll write better things about her later promise
> 
> Okay now that all of that is out of the way: hope you enjoy!

Eliza was woken by her phone buzzing. 

**Angie (sent 07:13 am)**

_remember last night_

**Angie (sent 07:13 am)**

_when you told me to text you when i woke up in case you didn't hear your alarm_

**Angie (sent 07:13 am)**

_well that's what i'm doing right now so don't you dare get annoyed with me_

Eliza groaned, squinting at her phone as she sat up in her bed. Both she and Angelica had decided to take morning classes, even though Angelica was a junior and really should have known better. Everyone else Eliza knew who had at least a tiny bit of college experience had told her to  _not_ take morning classes. But Angelica, with her usual conviction, had managed to persuade her into it. 

"It's good for you," she had said the day Eliza had gotten her acceptance letter to the same college as her sisters. "I took morning classes my junior year, and honestly it was more refreshing than anything else." 

So Eliza had agreed, for a moment forgetting the most significant way Angelica was different from herself. Angelica loved college. She loved all of it, all the classes, all the work, all the late nights and the coffee stains. She had been teary eyed saying goodbye to Eliza when she left for college the year before, not because she was sad about leaving her family (although she was, but Eliza was sure that wasn't why she cried) but because she finally, finally, _finally_ was going to the place she had been preparing for what seemed like her entire life.

"I don't have to _lower_ myself down here," Angelica had told Eliza over the phone a few months prior. Her voice had been so sure, so confident. Even though Eliza didn't quite understand, she thought she knew what Angelica meant. At college, more than in high school, you were supposed to be clever. And being clever was what Angelica did better than anything else. 

 

**Eliza (sent 07:14 am)**

i kinda hate you right now

**Eliza (sent 07:15 am)**

i can't believe i let you convince me into doing this

**Angie (sent 07:15 am)**

it's literally only your first day

**Angie (sent 07:16 am)**

i can't believe you're already like this omg what are you gonna be like in a month

**Eliza (sent 07:17 am)**

in a month i'll be long gone

**Eliza (sent 07:17 am)**

KILLED by lack of sleep

 

With that, Eliza threw clicked her phone shut. At the other end of the room, her roommate was sleeping peacefully. She had arrived late the night before, with only a suitcase as her luggage and a tired look on her face. Eliza and her hadn't really gotten a chance to talk yet, which was unfortunate, but at least she seemed kind. Her name was Maria, and she reminded Eliza in a strange way of Peggy. Both of them had the same youthful look in their eyes, always looking so straight forward and yet oddly vulnerable. Eliza had almost felt sorry for Maria when she saw her quietly unpack her suitcase before going straight to bed, clearly exhausted. Eliza didn't feel like her questions would be welcome then, so she hadn't talked much as Maria got ready for sleep. She had barely gotten to introduce herself. She would have to find a time they were both in the room together, so they would get time to talk. Introduce themselves properly. Get to know each other. The idea of living with a person she didn't know made Eliza kind of anxious. 

But now, Maria was asleep, so Eliza carefully got up from her bed and started getting ready for the day. She knew Peggy and Angelica had gone out drinking the night before with some friends. Peggy had sent her some pictures on snapchat where she was being embraced by the engaged couple she and Angelica sometimes hung out with. Eliza had never mentioned it, but she really couldn't stand them. At least not the tallest one (she could never remember his name, but she remembered his giant hair and unhinged bravado). But Peggy enjoyed spending time with them, however rude they may be. In the picture she had looked happy, her hair newly dyed for the new school year, and her eyes shining. Eliza had saved the picture, she never knew the next time she would need to see Peggy happy. 

Eliza was as quiet as possible getting ready, not wanting to wake her new roommate. When she almost dropped her razor and was close to cutting her face as she shaved, she swore loud enough for her to have to check if Maria was still asleep. Having a roommate was exhausting, no matter how kind Maria may turn out to be. It was just a weird feeling, getting ready  for the morning with someone else in the room. Eliza felt especially self conscious taking her pills, as if Maria could wake up at any moment. Not that Maria didn't know she took hormone pills, of course she did. Eliza had sent her an email as soon as she had gotten her name, explaining everything. But still, the idea of someone watching her take her pills made Eliza a bit uncomfortable. 

As soon as she was ready for the day (skirt on, hair brushed, makeup applied) Eliza hurried out the door. The hallways of her dorm was filled with girls walking around in various degrees of ready-ness. A few of them said hello to Eliza as she walked past them, and Eliza gave them a quick smile in return. She was almost late for her first class of the day. No, her first class of college. Ever. 

Damn Angelica and her stupid ideas about morning classes. 

* * *

 

 

When Aaron found out he and Alex was in the same political science class, he was first annoyed at Alex, then at himself. He should have known the second he met Alexander Hamilton that he would be exactly the kind of person to take a morning class in political science, just as he should have known that Alex's and his own alarm would go off at the exact same time at 5 am. 

 

 

"So you're taking political science too?" Alex had asked, as soon as Aaron had told him what class he was going to. "That's great! Really, I should have known you would take political science. You seem like the type." 

Aaron was half a mind to ask him what exactly  _the type_ meant, but decided against it. Instead, he just gritted his teeth and followed Alex as he trotted across campus, book bag slung over one shoulder and glasses balancing on his nose. 

Alex was just the type of person Aaron was trying to stay clear of. A loud mouthed, opinionated boy with an accent and hair too long for his own good. Aaron new Alex was clever, that was easy to understand, but he really should start to act like it. Aaron couldn't help but wonder if Alex know that to fit in at a place like this they had to work  _hard_. Harder than anyone else. 

As of now, it seemed like what Alex wanted more than anything was to stand out, and he was forcing Aaron to be different with him. 

They got to the lecture hall about ten minutes early, but the doors were open and people were already finding their seats. Without even a look in Aaron's direction, Alex hurried towards the front of the hall, where almost all the seats were free. Aaron felt his cheeks burn "Please," he thought to himself. "Just do yourself a favor and don't sit at the front." 

Alex seemed to have no self preservation skill, because he eagerly sat down at the very first row and started getting his laptop and books ready. A part of Aaron wanted to just leave him there by himself. Let him sit there with his crappy laptop and second hand books. But another part of him, the kinder, more scared part new that so far Alex was the closest thing he had as a friend.

Sighing, he made his way towards the front of the room.  

"What took you so long?" Alex asked, not looking at him. He was already writing in his notebook, brows furrowed and mouth half open. Aaron didn't answer, just looked through his bag to find his own computer. It was just as bad as Alex's, but he took good care of his own to at least make it  _seem_ expensive. Looking around at the other people in his class, Aaron became painfully aware of the state of both his and Alex's things. He didn't know much about Alex's background, aside from that he was an orphan from Nevis who only came to the states a few years ago. He had no idea exactly what had happened to Alex that made him come to college alone, with nothing with him but a bag filled with books and a shitty computer. 

Aaron was so busy thinking that he didn't notice the girl walking towards him until she was standing right in front of their seats.

"Hi," she said. "Is it okay is I sit here?" 

Aaron didn't react at once, just stared at her. He was aware that he sometimes made people uncomfortable, trying to read their expressions and movements. But sometimes it was just so much easier to observe people than actually talking to them. 

While Aaron was quiet, Alex immediately scrambled to his feet. "Of course!" 

Aaron almost cringed at his accent. Almost. He watched as Alex reached out a hand for the girl to shake, and the girl took it. "Eliza," she said, smiling. She was pretty, Aaron thought. She looked  _soft_. A half smile on her lips and and her hair perfectly set up in a bun. Aaron could smell her perfume from where he was sitting.

Eliza took a seat next to Alexander, neatly folding her coat and stuffing it in her backpack. While she was turned away, Aaron could see Alex staring at her. "For the love of God," he thought, and was half a mind to actually smack Alex at the back of the head. "Please close your mouth." 

When the girl turned around to face them again, Alex's mouth was indeed closed. He looked at Aaron for half a second, and Aaron could have swore he mouthed the words  _this one's mine_ before turning to face Eliza again. 

"Have I seen you before?" Alex asked, and Aaron couldn't help but snort. Alex most certainly hadn't. 

"I don't think so," Eliza said, crossing her legs. "I just got here yesterday. Haven't really been much outside my dorm room." 

"Me too!" Alex said. "Well, I didn't get to  _the city_ yesterday. Just to campus. I live in New York. Where are you from?" 

"Charleston," Eliza said. "But my sister goes to college here, so this just seemed like... a good choice." 

Aaron couldn't help but note the hesitation in her voice. 

"A friend of mine is from Charleston." Alex sounded so enthusiastic, Aaron wondered how he managed to keep that level of energy up at eight in the morning. Not only was his voice light, but he kept twisting and turning in his seat, like the sheer effort of sitting still was too much for him. 

"Oh, where?" Eliza asked. Genuinely interested, or at least it sounding that way. 

"I actually don't know," Alex answered, looking puzzled for a moment. "Some small town? I honestly can't remember. His name is Jack Laurens, so maybe you know him." 

Eliza's mouth shaped a perfect O. "I don't know  _him_ ," she said, leaning forward and resting her elbows on her knees. "But I know his family. Our parents are friends, I think. Me and my sisters have been to some of their dinner parties."

" _Dinner parties_ ," Alex said. "That sounds..." 

"Rich," Aaron thought. He had been silent for a long time, borderline forgotten in the conversation. He hadn't even introduced himself. He mentally shook his head, and repositioned himself in his seat. What was with him today?

He leaned to the side to give Eliza a better view of him. "Hi," he said. "I don't think we've met either. I'm Aaron Burr."

Eliza shook his hand. "Eliza Schuyler." There was a pause. "Are you guys friends?"

"He's my roommate," Alex explained as Eliza let go of Aaron's hand. "And friend."

Aaron made sure the smile stayed on his face and was just about to say something else when someone new walked into the room. A tall bald man, looking like a professor taken straight out of a college TV show. Alex leaned forward so he was sitting at the edge of his seat as soon as he saw the professor walk in the room.

As the class starts, Aaron forces himself to stay focused. Its only his first day of college, and he already feels exhausted. It was going to be harder to keep up than he first imagined. Harder to keep up with his crazy roommate, with school, with all the social codes he was just starting to wrap his head around...

No, Aaron couldn't let himself think that way. He was going to make this work. He was not going to make his new roommate, or anything else, distract him from his goals. And with that thought in mind, he pushed his doubts away and turned on his computer, ready to start taking notes as his professor starts speaking. 

 

* * *

 

 

For Jack Laurens, the first day of college had been a blur. Classes, people, note taking, eating, Mulligan constantly texting him about one thing or another, his father calling (Jack let it go to voicemail), more classes... When Jack finally got back to his room, he was almost relieved to find that it was empty. When checking his phone, he found a message from Mulligan saying he would spend the night at at Beth's place. Jack smiled at that and only texted a winky face back before tossing his phone on Mulligan's bed and laying face down in his own. Maybe he should just sleep for a while. He didn't have any food in his room, did he? Maybe the old bag of chips in his bag. 

And then there was a knock on the door. 

Jack lifted his head from the pillow, frowning at the door. He mentally went through the list of people he knew well enough already to be knocking on his door. Not many, but then again a lot of people could be looking for Mulligan.

Jack was a bit baffled when he found Alex Hamilton standing in his doorway, backpack slung over his shoulder and glasses balancing on his nose. His hair was tied in a bun today, his eyes made even larger than usual by his glasses. He wasn't  _handsome_ , not in the traditional sense at least, but there was still something about him that made Jack's stomach turn in a familiar way. 

"Hey," Alex said, stalking past him to get into the room. "I hope its okay I came over." 

"Yeah, of course," Jack answered, still confused. Alex dropped his backpack on the floor and swiftly sat down on Mulligan's bed. Jack couldn't help but stare at his hands as he started tapping his fingers on the covers. "But err... why are you here?" 

Alex started emptying his backpack. There was nothing in it but books and perhaps the oldest laptop Jack had ever seen. "I study better when I talk out loud," Alex said, opening a book. "And my roommate basically just told me to shut up or get out." 

"Aaron?" Jack asked, sitting down on his own bed and looking as Alex turned on his computer. He had to slam his fingers on the  _on_ button a few times to get it to work.

"That's him," Alex said with a grimace. "Although he did say it in his usual, polite way." Alex put on a posh accent. "My dear Alex, I truly am sorry but I find your chatter completely fucking unbearable so would you, my dear friend, please take your shit elsewhere?"

Jack started laughing. "You do talk a lot, though."

"Well, you're just going to have to live with it," Alex said. "Cause' I don't have anywhere else to go."  

Jack really didn't mind Alex being in his room. He certainly didn't mind the way Alex scrunched his nose when he read or the way his slender fingers moved across the keyboard. 

"It's cool," Jack said. "Just stay. But do you really have any work to get done? Its only our first day." 

"Got a lot of stuff to read," Alex said, pointing to to books. "A lot of research to do." 

Jack nodded, like he understood. "Okay. Go for it. But I can't promise I'll listen when you talk." 

Alex looked up from his computer, staring at Jack through his glasses. His eyes were so intense that Jack felt a bit taken aback. "That's okay," Alex said, grinning. "I'm used to it." 

Jack snorted. He leaned his back towards the wall, resting his feet on his bed. "So how was your first day?" 

"Amazing," Alex said, still staring with the same intense look in his eyes. He then added as an afterthought, "Busy." 

Jack sighed. "Mine too, but its great." 

Alex nodded. "Better than great. I've been dreaming of this since... well since I came here." 

Jack laughed again, straightening his back. "Since you came to campus? That's like a two day old dream." 

Alex rolled his eyes. "Since I came to New York." 

"Really?" Jack hesitated. "And when was that?" 

"Oh," Alex looked down at his laptop again. He started typing as he talked. "I guess its about two years ago now. I came here with my uncle. There was... problems at home. In Nevis." 

"Problems?" Jack knew he probably shouldn't ask, but it would feel weird not to. Plus, he wanted to know. He wanted to get to know Alex. Wanted to become familiar to him. 

Alex bit his lip. He didn't look up. "Yeah. Just... problems." 

Jack decided not to push it. "I'm glad your dream is coming true," he said instead. 

"Well, now I'm moving forward to a new dream." 

"And what's that?"

Alex winked, actually  _winked_ at him. "Presidency," he said. 

"For some reason," Jack answered. "I don't think you're joking."

"I'm not," Alex laughed. "That is the  _ultimate_ dream. But I'm taking it step by step." 

"I thought the ultimate dream would be world domination." 

"I've been exposed," Alex said, still smiling. He had dimples, Jack realized. The thought of that made him kind of dizzy. "Don't tell people about my secret plan to take over the world, please." 

"Only if you let me in on it." 

"Fine, but you can have control over all the boring countries. Like Sweden and Switzerland. I'll take the US and Canada. And Nevis." 

"I like Sweden," Jack said. "Deal." 

Alex was still smiling. Dimples. Wrinkles around his eyes. God, Jack knew this feeling. This awful, wonderful feeling.

He could not get a crush on some random guy the second day of college. He could  _not_. He hadn't even come out yet. Hadn't even finished his two point list. 

But Alex didn't feel random. Not at all. 

"Hey," Alex said, cutting Jack's thoughts short. "Do you know someone named Eliza?"

"Eliza?" Jack asked, still feeling a bit dazed. "I'm not sure." 

"Apparently she knows your parents." 

"Oh," Jack said, suddenly remembering. "The Schuyler sisters." 

"You know them?" 

"Yeah, our families are friends. I don't really know any of them, but they come over once in a while." 

Alex nodded. "I met one of them today. Eliza. She's cute." 

She was cute, and Jack knew it. He tried to push the disappointment away. "She's really nice," he said. "From what I know."

"Good," Alex said. "I'm thinking of asking her out."

"I'm thinking of punching something really hard," Jack thought, not saying anything. Of course Alex would fall for a nice girl with a pretty smile and ask her out. 

Of course. 

"Good idea," Jack said, keeping his voice steady. He then pointed to the books now sprawled on Mulligan's bed. "Aren't you supposed to study?" 

Alex let out a puff of air and started typing again. The rest of the night, they were more quiet. Alex worked while occasionally commenting on whatever he was reading, and Jack sat on his phone. Sometimes he would show Alex a funny pictures or a video, careful not to look at the smile he got in return for more than absolutely necessary. 

Crushes had never worked out well for him. More often than not, Jack had wound up, well, crushed.

Alex didn't leave, though, and Jack didn't ask him too. As it got later he got more and more tired, while Alex continued working. Jack could feel himself falling asleep, could feel himself drifting...

"Remember to close the door when you leave," he told Alex just before his eyes slid shut. He only got a grunt in return, maybe a fraction of a sentence, but he couldn't hear more than that before he was asleep. 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> next chapter: Maria Reynolds! Peggy! Eliza! Angelica! The odd engaged couple who pop up in conversations and everyone has mixed opinions about!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a lot of people falling in love in this fic, you have been warned.
> 
> And yes, this took a while.. too much school and all kinds of stress. But writing this was fun

Maria should have just gotten a new phone. Maybe one of those cheap flip phones they still seemed to sell everywhere, years after people had stopped using them. She should have, but even a flip phone was too expensive for her at the moment. Maybe she could change her number... as soon as she figured out how. If only he'd just stop calling, then she wouldn't have to bother. She thought she had made it so clear when she left the apartment. She had even told him straight, not caring about how cliche it sounded; _don't call me_. Of course he had called, anyway. He had never really cared about what she wanted.

Sighing, she lay her phone face down on the table in front of her, not wanting to look at it anymore. She was in her dorms common room, where someone had decided it was a good idea to put a bright yellow couch and an even brighter green table. It was late, and that was why Maria had come here. Most people were either out or locked up in their rooms at this time, and Maria couldn't bare to be either. Her roommate was nice, that wasn't the problem. The problem was how many questions she asked, how kind she acted. Maria always felt like Eliza somehow _knew_ , like everything that had happened the last few months was written on her skin, and all Eliza had to do was read. Granted, it felt like that with most people, but most people Maria didn't have to live with. 

She leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes. She was tired (she was always tired, these days). Her first day on campus all she had done was sleep after she got back from her classes. Sleep and stare at her phone, at the caller idea that kept showing up. How long until he came looking for her? How long until he got tired of waiting? 

"Hi," someone said, and Maria jumped in her seat. Eliza had just walked in the room, and was now half leaning against the doorframe. She was in her pajamas, with her hair falling loose down her face. She didn't look tired, not the same way Maria sometimes did. No bags under her eyes, no greyish tone to her skin, just a small smile and a curious expression. 

"Hi," Maria quickly straightened her back, trying to look more awake than she felt. More normal. Less jittery. "You're up?" 

"Yeah," Eliza said, she walked over to the couch and sat down next to Maria. "I saw you walk out a while ago, thought you might be here. I wanted us to get a chance to talk." 

Why did her heart start beating like this? Why was her palms starting to get clammy? Why did she have to be so scared all the time? "Really?" Maria asked, hoping Eliza didn't hear the slight wavering in her voice. "Talk about what?" 

Eliza smiled, folding her hands on her lap. "Anything. I want to get to know you, you know. We'll be living together for a  _year_." 

The ways she said it almost made Maria smile. Like a year was so long. Like a year was a lifetime, a lifetime they couldn't spend being strangers. "Okay," Maria knew she sounded skeptical, didn't try to hide it. 

Eliza's smile wavered. "I mean, I'd like us to be friends. Wouldn't you?" 

Maria bit her lip.  _I'd like to have my own room_. "Friends sounds good." 

"Okay," Eliza nodded, encouraged to go on. "So I thought we'd just... ask each other questions." 

Maria wondered if Eliza knew that the more she talked the more Maria felt like making an excuse to leave the room. "Like a speed date?" She asked. 

Maria could have swore Eliza blushed. "Almost. Its a friend speed date. That okay?" 

"Okay," Maria nodded, feeling her chest tighten. She knew she wouldn't be able to answer with the truth. "You can start." 

"Great," Eliza smiled, all too genuine. "Where are you from?" 

One question, and it was already too much for Maria to answer. She could answer San Francisco, it would be true. She could tell about the fog that settled every morning around her childhood home, could talk about the steep streets and the "My turn. Where are  _you_ from?"

"Charleston, I've never lived anywhere else. Do you have any siblings?" 

"None, I'm a lonely child. Do you?" 

Eliza nodded eagerly. "Two sisters. They all go to school here, actually. Peggy and Angelica." 

Maria raised an eyebrow. "All three of you at the same school? Why, did you just happen to like the same place?" 

Eliza didn't answer right away this time, instead she took a moment to look down at her hands. "I- We wanted to go together. And this is a good school." 

"It's your turn now." 

"Oh," Eliza met Maria's eyes again, "Err... How do you like college so far?"

Maria smiled, biting. "Oh, I love it. Best time of my life." 

Eliza opened her mouth to say something, looking surprised, but at that moment Maria's phone rung again. Both of them stared at the phone, there it was vibrating on the tabletop. Maria felt her heart sink in her chest. 

"Aren't you gonna pick it up?" Eliza asked after a while of only the painfully jolly sound of Maria's ringtone breaking the silence. Maria pressed her lips together before picking the phone up, quickly checking the caller idea.  _James Reynolds_. She turned off the sound. 

"I'm going to bed," Maria said, slipping the phone into her pocket. "I'm tired." 

Eliza got up from the couch at the same time Maria did. "Me too, I have early classes tomorrow."

Together, they made their way towards their room. Maria could see Eliza glancing in her direction as they walked up the stairs to their floor, and resisted the urge to glare back. "I'm going to find a way to change my number," she decided as they locked themselves back into their room. "And I'm going to get Eliza Schuyler to leave me alone." 

 

* * *

 

 

"Alex." 

"What?"

"Alex." 

" _What?_ "

"Alex I swear to God if you don't get up I'll throw water on you. Or beer." 

Alex opened his eyes. He was staring straight up at someones face, a freckled someone with a bundle of curls looking very fluffy on one side of the head and very flat on the other. Alex rubbed his eyes and sat up in what he soon realized wasn't  _his_ bed. As he sat up, something heavy fell down his stomach and down on the covers. His laptop. 

"Jack?" Alex said, blinking. He wasn't in his own room either, he could tell by the large posters football posters on the walls and the actual curtains hanging in the tiny window. And he could tell by the fact that Jack was there, standing next to his bed with bed hair and a sleepy expression. 

"That's me," Jack said, looking just as tired as Alex felt. "I think you fell asleep while working last night. Like literally mid-type."

Alex got up from the bed, swaying a little. He got like that sometimes, after too much coffee and too little sleep. Either he was unbalanced or the world was. "I do that sometimes," he said, moving towards the mirror hanging on the wall next to the door. 

"That doesn't sound very healthy, Alex," Jack informed him, sitting back down on his bed. 

Alex yawned. "How would you know what's healthy?" 

"Well, I know that's not healthy because you look like death." 

Alex took a quick look at himself in the mirror. Yes, there was large bags under his eyes and yes his lips were the kind of dry and swollen and his face a bit pale but other than that he looked fine. "You're always so kind to me." 

Jack half smiled, staring as Alex started arranging his hair into the usual ponytail. "I really am kind. Even to people I've just met. I literally just let you sleep in my room." 

Alex spun around from the mirror. He didn't know exactly how much the clock was, but he knew he was probably late. He was always late for something. There was always other things he could be doing than sleeping or eating or talking to Jack Laurens.

"Thanks for letting me stay," Alex said, finding his backpack and starting to stuff his books and laptop into it again. "You're a lifesaver. I'm going to run now, because I have stuff to do, I was actually planning on going to the library before class," he quickly checked the clock on his phone and grimaced, "but I guess I don't have time for that. Anyway, I'm going to go now see you later." 

And with that he hurried out the door, wincing a little as it slammed behind him. He had way too much to do and way not enough time to do it. Looking at his phone again, Alex started walking faster. He never had enough time. 

 

* * *

 

 

When Thomas had called asking Aaron if he wanted to have lunch sometime, Aaron had thought he meant sometime within the next month, not the next two days. That's why he was a little surprised when Thomas texted him asking him to come meet him and James at a cafe in the neighborhood. Thomas and James had always been his friends, ever since freshman year of high school when the three of them for some reason decided to be friends. It was weird, thinking about that now, seeing as the three of them was so different. It was even weirder to think about that Thomas and James some time in junior year had decided to become a couple, leaving Aaron to an existence of constantly third-wheeling them. Aaron knew both Thomas and James understood how awkward things sometimes was for Aaron. He also knew they didn't care. 

The cafe Thomas had picked was right by campus, and when Aaron got there both he and James was already sitting at a table, waiting for him. James was occupied reading something on his phone and barely looked up when Aaron walked in, raising his arm in and awkward wave. Thomas on the other had sprung out of his seat and placed himself right in Aaron's path. "Burr!" He said, loudly enough for the whole cafe to hear. He placed his hands on Aaron's shoulders and looked him up and down, the way he had a habit of doing. "You look... exactly the same?" 

Aaron sighed, pushing Thomas hands off. "And you do too. That's nice." 

Thomas sighed, sitting down in his chair again. "I cut my hair." 

James looked up from his phone. "You keep mentioning that to everyone. Not even _I_ noticed."

Thomas rolled his eyes. "And you're usually so observant?" 

James clicked his phone shut, and sat up straighter in his seat. "I usually notice when something is going on with you, don't I?" 

"But not my hair," Thomas said, running a hand through it. 

James tilted his head. "Never your hair." 

The familiarity of it all was almost weird. It had always been like this. Thomas and James bickering, Aaron listening. Sometimes Aaron wondered if the reason they had all become friends was because no one else could stand to be around them for a longer period of time. Thomas had always been popular, yes, but James and Aaron had always, for different reasons, been the quiet ones who kept to themselves. 

"I can order for us," James said, putting his phone down. "What do you want?" 

Thomas shrugged. "The usual." 

James nodded, because he knew, of course he knew, what Thomas usual. Them getting together, them getting  _engaged,_ seemed so inevitable sometimes, when Aaron thought about it. 

James turned towards Aaron. "What about you?" 

Thomas snorted. "Let me guess, just coffee?" 

"Just coffee," Aaron rolled his eyes, but smiled. He always ordered just coffee or just drinks when they went out for lunch somewhere, and both James and Thomas knew why. Unless they payed, Aaron didn't have money to actually order food, especially not at fancy hipster cafes. Aaron didn't think neither James nor Thomas had ever understood exactly how many ways being poor sucked, and Aaron wasn't about to explain it to them. He was happy to let them go around thinking it was funny to not be able to afford food from other places than K-mart. 

"Everything you order is on me," Thomas said and Aaron sighed. "Still just coffee," he said. He wasn't hungry, anyway. 

"If that's what you want.." As James walked towards the counter, Thomas leaned towards Aaron to properly stare at him across the table. 

"What?" Aaron asked. 

"I haven't seen you in a while," Thomas said, still staring. "And even though you look the same, you probably aren't. So what's been going on in Burr- land. Anything new to tell me?" 

Aaron pressed his palms flat against the table, searched his mind for anything to say. He came out blank. "Nothing, really. Same old." 

"We just started college," Thomas said. "That can't be same old. How's your roommate?" 

Aaron and Thomas had texted over the last few days, but Aaron hadn't told him much then either. What was he supposed to say? That his new roommate was way too clever and way too aware of it? That he was pretty sure whatever bad aura he had around him back home seemed to follow him here, causing him to somehow automatically push people away? "My roommate is nice," Aaron said, through gritted teeth. "I'm just starting to get to know him but he seems like a good guy." 

"Have you noticed that you use the adjectives  _nice_ and  _good_ to describe pretty much anything, Aaron?" James asked. He was back by their table, carrying small tray with their drinks balancing on it (and in Thomas case, a blueberry muffin). 

"I don't do that," Aaron said, rather stiffly. They knew him too well, the both of them. It would be so much harder to remake himself into whatever person he wanted to be, needed to be, in New York if they were there, just  _knowing_ him.

"Uh, yes you do," Thomas said, grabbing his muffin. He put on a bad imitation of Aaron's voice. "This salad is so  _good_. Miley Cyrus seems  _nice._ "

"It's two of the most neutral adjectives one can find," James supplied. "I see why you use them so often." 

"I use them," Aaron said, unable to control the edge to his voice, "because they are  _true_." 

"Sure you do," Thomas said, breaking off a piece of muffin and offering it to James, who gladly accepted. "Everything in the world is good and nice, you are absolutely right." 

"I-" Aaron begun, but was interrupted by Thomas who raised a finger, not in his direction, but James. 

"I think there's nuts in this," Thomas said, taking the piece of muffin back from James who stared at him with a baffled expression. "Seriously, babe," Thomas continued. "You can't eat it. I'd rather not use that epipen again." 

James sighed, taking a long sip of his coffee. "You sure you didn't just want more muffin for yourself?" 

Thomas rolled his eyes as he propped the last piece of muffin in his mouth. "Positive, Jemmy. I'm not gambling with your life over a muffin." 

"Wow," James said, dryly. "That really warms my heart. And stop calling me Jemmy." 

"When we're married," Thomas suggested. "I'll stop calling you Jemmy after we're married." 

Aaron looked from one of them to the other. "Is it the end of the Jemmy days?" 

 

James nodded. "It has to be." 

They both jumped when Thomas clapped his hands together, efficiently grabbing both of their attention. "Well, we didn't ask you to lunch to talk about nut allergies," Thomas began, and James snorted. 

Aaron took a sip of his coffee. He should have known there was something. There was always something with Thomas, something Aaron was sure he didn't want to deal with right now. "What is it?" 

"We want to set you up with someone," Thomas began, and when Aaron made minds to object he calmly raised a hand. "A real, human girl."

"Boy, am I lucky," Aaron said. This wasn't the first time something like this had happened. Every once in a while Thomas would find some boy or girl he though suited Aaron and set them up. It always ended in disaster. One time, it ended with Thomas getting punched in the face. 

"She's brilliant," James said, suddenly sounding serious. "I really think you'll like her, Aaron." 

Aaron sighed, leaning back in his chair. He was tired. His shoulders ached because of the long evenings spent sitting bent over his laptop or a book, his eyes burning because he forgot to set in contacts in the morning. He didn't even feel like having lunch with anyone, much less getting set up with some girl. "How do you know her?" he asked, anyway.

"We take a few of the same classes," James said. "And she's just like you." 

"What, just like me?" Aaron tapped his fingers towards the tabletop. 

"She's smart," Thomas said. "But kind of mean about it. Smarter than you. And she saw a picture of you and said, and I quote; 'cute'. Doesn't get much better than that."

"I hate you," Aaron said, feeling his cheeks burn. Thomas just laughed. "You'll love me soon enough. This girl is amazing. And I got you her number." 

Aaron sighed, rubbing his forehead. It was like he could hear his own mind work somewhere in there. Turning wheels. "Okay," he said at last, and both Thomas and James broke into a smile. "What's this amazing girls name?" 

Thomas leaned closer to him, so his face was almost right in front of Aaron's. The glee was written all over his face, in the way his eyebrows raised and the corners of his mouth turned upwards. Thomas was scarily determined sometimes, always so oblivious to others needs and desires. If he wanted Aaron to go on a date with some girl, Aaron was going on a date with some girl. That's how it had always been. "Her name," Thomas began, "Is Theodosia Bartow. And I'm 99 percent sure she's the love of your life." 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Next time, its the Schuyler time to appear.


End file.
